Back by popular demand, The Fox and Goose in Wigley near Chesterfield is set to host a second James Bond themed charity dinner.

Designed to raise money for North Derbyshire Young Enterprise, as well as helping to raise the charity’s profile locally, the event will be once again be based on the 2006 film, Casino Royale.

The prestigious black tie event takes place on Saturday March 14th from 7pm and includes a delicious four-course dinner, which will be complimented by casino entertainment, a live band, raffle and silent auction.

Hazel James, volunteer board member of North Derbyshire Young Enterprise and event organiser said:-

“As well as being a really fun night, the dinner is also a vital part of the charity’s fundraising efforts.

“The event funds 90% of the work we do in supporting the schools and running the Young Enterprise Company Programme and is an incredibly important date in the board’s calendar.

“It’s a great cause for local businesses to get behind as part of their commitment to charitable giving and corporate social responsibility and we hope many people will join us at the event.”

Tables of ten are now available priced at £400 each, with all proceeds supporting North Derbyshire Young Enterprise. A limited number of individual tickets may also be available for smaller parties and couples. For more information and to book email Hazel.James@rykneldhomes.org.uk.

Chesterfield distributor Industrial Ancillaries will deliver its first accredited course in Industrial Hose Fittings and Safety next week.

Working in partnership with the British Fluid Power Association (BFPA), the training is designed for people working with hydraulic and pneumatic hoses across all industries including construction, oil and gas, plumbing, process and analytical instrumentation, energy, aerospace and medical.

As a BFPA approved training centre, the Industrial Ancillaries Academy is an important addition to the core business in helping to raise standards and awareness, especially in the area of safety within the industry.

Jamie Dennis, Managing Director of Industrial Ancillaries said:

“These training programmes have been established to raise the awareness levels of people who work with hydraulic and pneumatic hoses at all levels: from the system designer and field engineer, to the machine operator and the person who actually makes hose assemblies.

Being a supplier of these products, we have a responsibility to promote health and safety when the products are in use. Anyone looking to improve their working knowledge is welcome to participate in the courses.”

Run from the firm’s head office at Markham Vale, courses range from Foundation level, through to more intermediate classes in Hose Inspection and Management, and are aimed at anyone wishing to improve their current knowledge or job prospects within the industry.

Set dates are being advertised and private bookings are also available.  For more information and to book visit www.indanc.academy.

Business owners and managers are invited to find out about local training and apprenticeship opportunities at a workshop being held at Casa Hotel in Chesterfield this March.

Hosted by Sheffield City Region, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and the Skills Funding Agency (SFA), the event will include presentations from small businesses that have grown by developing their staff and taking on apprentices.

Sheffield City Region LEP Board Member Nigel Brewster said: “The benefits of taking on an apprentice or investing in skills training for staff are clear. However, we know that for some sole-traders and small businesses the whole process can seem time consuming and knowing where to start can be a barrier. These events will begin to tackle this by giving local business owners practical advice about how they can upskill their workforce. Business growth is at the heart of the LEP’s vision, and we recognise that if business owners and managers give employees the right skills then they will be better able to grow.”

Melanie Ulyatt, FSB Regional Chairman, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, said: “The FSB is passionate about helping small business to grow and succeed. That’s why we’ve teamed up with the LEP and SFA to host these events which will give businesses up-to-date information and effective advice about skills training opportunities in Sheffield City Region.”

The workshop will take place Tuesday 10 March, 9am to 1pm, Casa Hotel, Lockoford Lane, Chesterfield.  Free to attend, businesses encouraged to register online as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. For booking information visit http://growththroughtraining.org.uk/skillsevents.

Handelsbanken Chesterfield has appointed a new member of staff in response to increasing demand for its local relationship banking services.

Fraser Kirkman joins the fast-growing relationship bank, following his graduation in Business and Management last year. He will be involved in the operational side of the branch, supporting and serving existing customers, as well as welcoming new customers to Handelsbanken’s bespoke approach to local banking.

Fraser commented: “I am delighted to be joining Handelsbanken Chesterfield. What attracted me to Handelsbanken was its focus on close personal relationships with its customers, its reputation for high levels of service and its traditional values. I will be joining a team of experienced bankers who have the power to make decisions that matter to our customers here in the branch. It will be great to start my banking career in my local branch.”

The branch, established in 2012 and located at Spire Walk, has developed a reputation for traditional banking, financial strength and high standards within the local business and professional services community.

Phil Walker, Branch Manager, added: “I am very pleased to welcome Fraser to the Chesterfield branch team. This is a great local story – a local lad who has graduated and chosen to start his Handelsbanken career in Chesterfield. His appointment means that we can continue to meet the growing needs of both existing and new customers in and around Chesterfield, whilst maintaining the high levels of service for which we are renowned.”

Originally from Sweden, Handelsbanken now has over 820 branches in 24 countries, and has been judged one of the world’s strongest banks by financial information provider Bloomberg.

SEO CoPilot presented a technical masterclass to digital and creative students at Chesterfield College last week to give them a competitive edge when applying for work.

Guy Tomlinson, Founder of SEO CoPilot, took students through some of the high-level techniques and procedures for understanding search engine optimisation and website traffic, as well as looking at the decisions businesses need to make when setting up online.

Guy, who is keen to help students gain practical experience said:-

“There are so many different technology models that students need to understand to be able to compete in industry and so I am very happy to offer my support and experience to compliment the curriculum covered at Chesterfield College.

“If a website isn’t optimised for the search engines the site will not show up when people search for products and services relevant to their business. As this is the lifeblood of any business it’s essential to get it right first time.

“Through this masterclass I was able to explain to students the importance of building elements of online marketing strategy into the website design and I hope this knowledge will help them to stand out from the crowd when looking for employment.”

Digital and Creative Industries Lecturer at Chesterfield College, Julia Allen said:-

“We’re all for industry experts coming into College and passing on some of the latest and greatest in skills and knowledge that will help students progress in their future careers.

“The session proved to be particularly popular as it geared the students with a solid understanding of how to provide future clients with a fantastic service.”

SEO CoPilot is based in the heart of Chesterfield and delivers bespoke search engine optimisation, pay per click and social media campaigns to help businesses increase traffic to their website and boost the amount of sales and enquiries they receive.

Shorts Chartered Accountants are delighted to announce the recent appointment of Ceri Lewis as Healthcare Director. Ceri will work in both Chesterfield and Sheffield and brings with her over 28 years of experience working with the healthcare sector, with a specific specialism in advising GP Practices.

Partner, Andy Irvine commented, “Ceri has a proven track record of providing quality advice to clients based within healthcare and her background and experience align perfectly with our commitment of ensuring our clients receive the very best advice and service. Ceri’s decision to join Shorts adds further strength to our rapidly expanding team and as we settle into our new Sheffield office we are looking forward to an exciting and busy 2015.”

Ceri said: “I am thrilled to be joining Shorts and look forward to supporting the continuing growth of the firm’s healthcare offering. Shorts is a highly regarded independent practice who are clearly focused on meeting all aspects of their clients’ needs I am looking forward to being instrumental in the future development of the firm.”

A recruitment drive has begun to find four volunteer business advisers who will share their experience and enthusiasm with Chesterfield and Derbyshire pupils to help them succeed in a national competition.

Run by the UK’s largest enterprise and education charity, the Young Enterprise Company Programme challenges students aged 15-19 to set up a business for an academic year while developing transferable employability skills that would be an asset to future employers.

This year’s local Young Enterprise Area Final will take place at the Winding Wheel in Chesterfield in March with the winning company going on to the Derbyshire County event in April. Winners here progress to the national HSBC Young Enterprise Innovation Awards in London to battle it out to become the UK’s Young Enterprise Company of the Year.

Hazel James, a recruitment and training officer at Rykneld Homes has been volunteering as a business adviser since 2008. Sharing her enthusiasm for the role and encouraging others to join, Hazel said:-

“I remember my first meeting well. I struggled to see this room full of sixth formers ever being able to pull themselves together and build a business from nothing! At first I couldn’t understand my role in the room but in time developed a style that has worked for both of us.

“I had to resist the temptation to jump in too early and take over when things went wrong or looked like they were going wrong. It’s all about learning by doing, and there is no better way to learn than from mistakes (because you won’t make the same ones again!). The company does not have to be successful to be a great learning experience – business/work failure is going to happen at some point in everyone’s life (even the likes of Sir Richard Branson) so it might as well be in the safe environment of Young Enterprise.

“Being a business adviser is an incredibly rewarding and exciting experience both for yourself and for the local community. You make a real difference to the lives and potential of young people in their area by helping them to understand the world of business and to prepare them for their working lives.”

Vice Chair of the Young Enterprise North Derbyshire Area Board, Steve Taylor comments:-

“We all have a responsibility to support young people in making the transition from school to the workplace and I am looking forward to expanding our current business adviser team this year.

With no qualifications or business start-up experience required, this is a great opportunity for anyone seeking to get involved with the local community and work with and inspire young people, at the same time as developing their own skills and broaden their knowledge.”

Business advisers are asked to commit to an initial one hour per week for the first month of the project and then one hour per fortnight, with most activity during the autumn and spring terms.

There is also comprehensive support for the advisers and students and there is a detailed handbook as well as access to the Company Programme website.

Anyone interesting in becoming a Young Enterprise Business Adviser should contact Steve Taylor at Start Financial Planning on 01246 268527 or email steve@startfp.co.uk.

Local leaders from the public and private sector have secured a £30 million cash boost for Sheffield City Region (which includes Chesterfield). This is in addition to £320m secured from Government last year, which will help the Local Enterprise Partnership to deliver its vision of creating 70,000 jobs over the next decade.

This top-up from Government makes Sheffield City Region’s total Growth Deal the fifth most substantial deal made with any City Region in England.

This extra funding will:

Enable the LEP to extend its highly successful business investment and support programme and create 4,400 new jobs for local people
Support a programme of investment in sustainable transport projects which could include cycle lanes, bus lanes, tram rail line replacement and other measures to make it easier and cheaper for people to get to work
Be invested in ready-to-go sites to help meet unmet demand from businesses wanting to set up quickly on Sheffield City Region Enterprise Zone
Support infrastructure work on the Midland Mainline which will mean faster journey times from Sheffield and Chesterfield to London.
Go towards building new training facilities, including plans for a Rail Engineering Campus in Doncaster
Councillor Sir Stephen Houghton CBE, Chairman of the Sheffield City Region Combined Authority, said:

“This Deal marks another milestone on our ‘devolution journey’ and builds on our recent Devolution Deal which transferred additional powers and policy levers from Government to our City Region’s decision makers.

“The Deal will need to be approved by Government after the General Election in May but we’re confident that this investment will be considered important by ministers of any political party as it is based on what our economy needs to grow.

James Newman, Chairman of the Sheffield City Region LEP, said:

“This is another step forward in ensuring that our City Region has the powers and funding that we need to grow our economy by growing local businesses and creating good jobs for local people.

“This important deal is the result of the excellent local partnerships in place across our City Region, particularly between the private sector led LEP Board and the Combined Authority. These strong local partnerships bring together local leaders from local government and from the private sector to make more effective local economic decisions.”

Government and D2N2 – the Local Enterprise Partnership for Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire – today agreed an additional investment package to further accelerate economic growth locally.

This brings total funding to a staggering £196.2m being awarded from the Government’s Local Growth Fund over six years.

David Ralph, Chief Executive of D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, said:

“Local places know their areas best and the expansion of the Growth Deals further demonstrate Government’s commitment to working with local areas and is a continuation of the changing relationship of devolved funding.

“We are continuing to develop the D2N2 economy as nationally recognised excellence in skills development and innovation in key economic sectors such as planes, trains and automobiles, life sciences and the low carbon economy. The expanded Growth Deal helps deliver that aspiration, and will help inspire our business base to work collaboratively to deliver the new jobs, in the right place, at the right scale.”

Peter Richardson, Chairman of D2N2, said: “We are absolutely committed to positioning this area to compete in the global economy and secure our goal of helping create 55,000 private sector jobs by 2023. The £22m in our expanded Growth Deal will help secure a strong, sustainable and increasingly resilient economy in D2N2, the UK’s most inspirational postcode.”